Bio-Rad Experion DNA Analysis Kits - Manual (Page 8)

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Vortex adapter
Power button
Mix button
Fig . 1 .4 . Experion vortex station .
1.2.4 Microfluidic Chips
At the center of the Experion system is the microfluidic chip in which sample separation occurs.
Each chip contains a series of plastic wells bonded over a small glass plate. The glass plate is etched
with a network of microchannels that connects with the base of the plastic wells. The microchannels
are primed, or filled with a mixture of gel matrix and stain, before the samples are applied to the wells.
Once a prepared chip is placed in the electrophoresis station and the lid is closed, 16 electrode
pins contact the solutions in each well. The electrophoresis station directs the samples through the
microchannels by controlling the voltages and currents that are applied. Different chips are used for
each application (Figure 1.5).
Fig . 1 .5 . Experion microfluidic chips .
1.2.3 Vortex Station
The Experion vortex station (Figure 1.4) ensures complete mixing of RNA or DNA samples and loading
buffers in the chip wells. The vortex adapter securely holds the chip during the 1 min vortex cycle. The
vortex station is not required for protein analysis.
1.2.5 Analysis Kits: Microfluidic Chips and Reagents
Experion analysis kits contain the microfluidic chips and reagents required to perform protein, RNA,
or DNA separation and analysis (Table 1.1).
n
Experion Pro260 analysis kit — used to resolve and quantitate 10–260 kD proteins with
sensitivity comparable to that of colloidal Coomassie Blue gel staining. The kit includes
the Experion Pro260 ladder, a modified version of Bio-Rad’s Precision Plus Protein
™
standards optimized for use on the system. The Experion Pro260 ladder contains 9 purified
recombinant proteins of 10–260 kD for accurate sizing of samples analyzed on a chip. Each
chip can separate up to 10 samples per analysis
Experion Automated Electrophoresis System